Can You Hear The Difference Between a Steinway, Yamaha and Bosendorfer? 

The yamaha sounded like a young energetic kid, the steinway was a well balanced middle aged man, and the Bösendorfer was a warm old man.

I know I am 5 years late, but this was interesting to me. Now I want to know more about the key action and which is better to play with the fingers! As a audio engineer, the Bosendorfer's note frequency response are the same across all notes. You can always add treble, but you cannot add a good low end. Wow on the Bosendorfer. Bosendorfer is the sound that I like...wow. Bosendorfer is doing all the things that pro/grammy audio engineers love while in default mode. Maybe you had the microphones setup differently, but I can still here the frequency response correctly. The key to a good recording and live sound for video and audio is the have low end wavelengths. I believe most concert halls choose Steinway and Yamaha because it gives pianists two sizes. A pianist will have a choice to which size that fits bests. I can play a 12th-note-chord in one hand so I don't mind the yamaha's wide key map. But most pianists smaller than me will go for the tinier keyboard (or more standardized steinway (if I dare say)). Now I have to go find a Bosendorfer (and see how it fits). P.S. The Steinway is a combo of "yamaha + bosendorfer" frequency response. As an audio engineer, the more information you have on the bass or lower frequency, then the better the range of adjustment that can be done in post by a equalizer and polarity switch and delays. Most musicians have a good ear due to playing and hearing all the time, so you go with the more mature low end => Bosendorfer. If my audience were musicians,=> Bosendorfer. If my audience is mostly men => Bosendorfer. If the audience is mostly children => Bosendorfer. If my audience is a bunch of untrained non-musicians ears => Steinway (because they don't have the ear to notice the low frequency difference (and they end up liking bright (and they are basically low end tone deaf))). If my audience is most women => Steinway (and its due again to the weak ears that most women have (but not all (but most end up liking bright))). The same thing is with Light, so we record blues and greens with the most data (via a f/1.2 - f/1.8 lens). And with audio try to get microphones that have a flat 20Hz to 1K frequency response; the 1K to 20KHz.can be a little lower (but make sure its not higher in volume). Most human eyes and hears (and smells) are tuned to record the low-end; upper harmonics are like icing on a cake. Really good video; I needed it, because I was trying to test another engineer.

Yamaha was the brightest and possibly best for Jazz, the Bosendorfer was warm and more muted, the Steinway was the most balanced between the two and to my ear had the most neutral sound.

Personally I think the Bosendorfer sounds the best. It seems to have just a bit more depth of tone than the other two.

After listening a second time, I have to say the Steinway is my overall favorite.

The Bosendorfer is a Lovely piano Sounds very civilised and calm, The Yamaha sounds very young and simple compared to the Bosendorfer, The Steinway & Sons sounds like a lovely treck through the woods with a mild amount of energy within, overall I prefer steinway because of its balance between the two however in terms of a orchestra the Bosendorfer is most likely the best option, where the Yamaha sits is probably in a Small Local Competition kind of way, not commercial like the steinway, but good enough experience for a small scale.

Welp, I guess I'll have to sell my house and live under my $220k piano.

I’m perfectly capable of making any of these pianos sound terrible!

I like the warm mellow sound of the Bosendofer for ballads and many classical pieces and Yamaha's brightness for jazz, and Steinway to cover it all, I'm sure anyone would be totally happy owning and playing anything on these beautifully crafted pianos.

I can only hear the sound of my wallet crying.

I agree that the Yamaha sounds very bright, the bosendorfer very warm and the Steinway is just perfectly balanced. But if you ever played with microphones you would know that moving them just a few inches can drastically change the sound of the recording. Take note that the pianos recorded in this video are not recorded in the same place, th bosendorfer seems to be located in a corner, the steiway in the middle of the room, this is also an important factor... So the video is interesting but not very scientific.

Watching this with my 5 dollars headphones

I’ve come to love the sound of Bosendorfers, especially for Beethoven, Schubert and Mozart!

Bösendorfer was like a beautifully matured bottle of wine.

The Steinway sounds like what a piano should sound like. The Bosendorfer sounds like what I want MY piano to sound like.

Bösendorfer is dark and alluring, Yamaha is sparkling and attractive.. Steinway you take home to your mum.

There’s just such depth and warmth in the bösendorfer pianos that I can’t get enough of

Yamaha is perfect for open grounds Steinway is perfect for concert halls Bosendorfer is perfect in a living room with a high ceiling

All of them sound great compared to my piano

For easier comparison: 0:32 Yamaha (classical) 1:23 Bösendorfer (classical) 2:14 Steinway (classical) 3:19 Yamaha (jazz) 4:03 Bösendorfer (jazz) 4:47 Steinway (jazz) Hope that helped.

Honestly speaking, i liked the Bosendorfer better for its "immersive and richer" sound compared to the other two.

I closed my eyes because I didn’t think any of them would sound that different, but man! It’s night and day with all three, they have their own unique sound. Simply amazing.

The pianos are not recorded in the same place, the Bosendorfer was in a corner, the Steiway in the middle of the room, this is also an important factor.

I love the Bosendorfer. The sort of soft muted sound it makes is just incredibly lovely and would sound amazing with a lot of my favorite songs to play. Such as kiss the rain by Yiruma. But Yamaha is also really nice.

There’s a sophistication and refinement with the Bösendorfer that’s irresistible.

Not really a valid test. The Bösendorfer was in the corner of the room which drastically changed the acoustics and reverb hitting the microphone.

Selling my car to drive my piano

Hard to focus on the sound when the nocturne is played so terribly

The Bosendorfer beats the Steinway with the law of diminishing returns and actually sounded the best to my ear. The Steinway sounded more balanced but not a hundred thousand dollars more worth of balance.

Yamaha - lively, joyful, bright, loud n clear Bosendorfer - elegant, deep, dim, muffled, blurry Steinway - in between .. I personally liked the Bosendorfer because i am a melancholic person.

i´d take any of these if i´d have the money

Steinway in my opinion is like a mix of Yamaha and bosendorfer s

Yamaha - Perfect for parties Bosendorfer - Perfect for lounge music Steinway - Perfect for concert halls

I like the fact that altough Bösendorfer has been a wholy-owned subsidiary of Yamaha for the last 13 years, Yamaha themselves have given Bösendorfer almost free reign when it comes to production and design and greatly value the Austrians' input and requests. Sure, there is some general guidance and marketing by the parent company, but Bösendorder themselves remain relatively independent when it comes to manufacturing and maintaining their own products. The headquarters remain in Vienna and every Bösendorfer piano is handcrafted to meticulous detail and quality control there. Plus, it must be great for Bösendorfer to have access to Yamaha's supply chains. Essentially, Bösendorfer is to Yamaha what Lamborghini is to VW and that is a good thing.

Bosendorfer. Nuff said

The Yahama is sharp and bright, The Bosendorfer is round and deep. The Steinway is vanilla and neutral.

The warm and full sound of the Bösendorfer is my love.

LOVE 'the bright' YAMAHA, MAN! (and Im a Julliard-Grad... Navy-Musician.. much worn, much accomplished, Studio-keyboardist. played 'em ALL!!!). YAMAHA DEFINITELY.. POSITIVELY the "funnest" to play - *people* just respond better to!! 2nd: STEINWAY... of course!

The Bösendorfer is honestly the best. Having played all three types in person it also has a deepness that doesn't come through the records that the other pianos don't have. This was an imperial grand though.

Bosendorfer was warm all over and pleasant to ears; Yamaha and Steinway were bright in general and especially bright in the higher ranges. I prefer Bosendorfer. It must be those 500 hours spent building it by hand. Thanks for the side by side. Please do a comparison of a different price range, maybe including Petrof?

“I would like to buy the Bösendorfer please.„

The Yamaha was definitely the brightest sounding and the Bosendorfer had the most mellow sound to it. The Steinway to me captured both pieces exceptionally well as it took the best of the other two and met right in the middle. Very impressive!

My impressions is : Bosendorf is more deep and serius sound. I preferer....

I have grown up on a Steinway grand since I was 13 months old. They are my favorite because I am deaf and it lets me feel the vibrations and the beat.

I prefer the Bosendorfer. Deeper, darker, mellower tone. Bass sound that goes miles deep, but also has a quick decay (perfect for both classical and jazz), with a mellow sweetness in the treble that is not hard or glassy like the Steinway (or to lesser extent, the Yamaha). All depends on what you want. The Steinway sound is brighter, more clangorous, with more overtones (at least, to my ears). The Bosendorfer is much "cleaner" - perfect for jazz pianists or classical musicians who specialize in the pre-Romantic repertoire. The Bosendorfer is the most distinct sounding of the 3, as the Steinway and Yamaha have a similar tonal profile. It (the Bosendorfer) is the warmest, cleanest, and deepest toned. I would describe it as having a "linear" sound. Clean from bass to treble but also distinct from register to register. Thus, the bass notes/chords are nicely set-off against the mids and treb. The Steinway & Yamaha don't have as much distinction in tone color between the registers, so the sound is more homogenous from low to high notes. If the Steinway has a tone that is a mile wide, the Bosendorfer's is a mile deep. Hard to express tone color in words. But I think the differences between the 3 are audible and obvious. If it sounds like I vastly prefer the Bosendorfer, well, that's right, I do. But that is no knock on Yamaha or Steinway, and both sound lovely here. I just prefer that cleaner, deeper sound. Backhaus, Gulda, Badura-Skoda, Annie Fischer, Walter Klien all preferred Bosendorfers. It is generally more popular in Central Europe, and also among jazz pianists (Gulda being a famous cross-over). Would have been cool to hear a C. Bechstein in this comparison...very distinct sound on that piano, almost bell-like. Baldwin would have been another interesting profile. Many today tout the Fazoli, which to my ears sounds like a cross between a Bosendorfer and a Steinway (clean like a Bosendorfer, but bright like a Steinway).

Bösendorfer piano, that's a sound i like

I’ve performed on both S and B concert grand. It’s a shame he didn’t mention the action of all 3. The Steinway’s action is incomparable! The sound on it: crystal clear, where you can show off articutation without being tinny on the higher register, nor being muffled in the lower register. A no brainer for “classical” music. If a more muted sound is your thing, no poblem, just buy a cheaper piano. A win-win situation.

I would say Yamaha is for energetic pieces like Mozart's. Steinway & Sons is for class like Chopin's. And Bösendorfer is for deep music like Beethoven's. Agree?

Yamaha too bright, Bosendorfer too warm/dark...Steinway the best, right in the middle soundwise

I vote for the Bosendorfer. Gives me a homey, nostalgic vibe that I love.

Based on these 3 recordings, my preference would be Steinway, Bosendorfer then Yamaha. The Bosendorfer is more muted and doesn't sing as loud. Its mellow. The Yamaha sounds too bright and crystal high. The Steinway sounds just right. Of course with the video, the viewer cannot perceive the quality of the key's action and response.

*__________Yamaha_______Bosendorfer_______Steinway* Song 1 ....... 0:35 ....................... 1:27 ................... 2:18 Sond 2 ....... 3:20 ...................... 4:03.................... 4:46 All of them are nice. All of them have a different style and character. Different songs will fit better on the different piano. In the perfect world an Ai piano with real hammer keys would be able to simulate all of them on the digital piano.

"Which 6-figure piano sounds best coming out of $16.99 Amazon lightning deal bluetooth headphones."

My house is 200k while my piano is 300k

Yamaha pulls at your heart strings a tad bit more. Bosendorfer had a more boxy sound and would be good for Thelonius Monk style material. Steinway had a very metallic sound. All three were nice but I think the string resonance on the Yamaha is a bit mor in tune with the vibrations of the multiverse. 🥳

That Bosendorfer has the fullest sound of the three. It has a nice pair of balls to it, I love it.

Yamaha: Very bright, crisp Steinway: Deep, and rich sounding Bosendorfer: Very rich and mellow Depends on what sound you're after. I'd probably go with the Yamaha because I like the bright and crisp sound.

If I ran a recording studio, I'd put a Yamaha in there. If I had a concert hall I'd put a Steinway on the stage. I'd take the Bosendorfer home to play for myself.

The Bosendorfer is next to two walls in the room corner which may be affecting the sound causing some coloration so it's hard to know what the overall resonant tone is; on the Jazz piece this actually enhances the music. The Yamaha was bright which sounds good on things like Chopin, but it was too much for the Jazz piece. The Steinway is a balanced all rounder, anything sounds good on it. I think that the Steinway is a touch more refined and balanced than the Yamaha. So for classical, I'd go for the Steinway although I liked the Chopin on the brighter Yamaha. The Bosendorfer sounded good with the Chopin too but may have been affected by the room acoustics. The Bosendorfer wins for the Jazz piece. You didn't mention Bechstein; Jazz also sounds just right on them with their particular voicing for playing Jazz chords and percussive patterns. The Yamaha was way to bright throughout for jazz, it was overwhelming.

I've been a concert pianist for over 50 years. Each Piano has it's own distinct merits. I've played on really good Steinways and bad ones. I've played where a Yamaha had blown away a Bosendorfer, visa-versa etc.... Si, it rally comes down to the actual instrument. However, when playing for a concert even though I prefer the sound of a Bosendorfer over the other two, I would always choose a 'good' Steinway because of reliability. The sound of a Steinway is a kind of mix between a Bosendorfer and a Yamaha but, once again, it's down to the instrument.

Just sold my kidney and I finally got a grand piano. Tnx black market for sponsoring me

0:32 yamaha 1:23 borsendorfer 2:15 steinway & sons

The steinway has such great clarity and dynamic range. The Yamaha is brighter and the bosendorfer has a richer warmer tone but the steinway covers the whole range

Bosendorfer sounded the best to me 🤷‍♀️

What I hear at first as a classical pianist is: Yamaha has a clear and bright voice that is very desirable when playing etudes. Bösendorfer has a warm tone combined with a bass that sounds unique and would be appropriate for cantabile playing in the middle register. Steinway explicitly pulls out more resonance and enharmonic qualities. Excavating the voices that usually only the trained pianist hears to the audience. In an ideal world I would have a Yamaha for practice, a Bösedofer for playing Liszt, Bartok, Rachmaninoff and Beethoven. As to utilize the percussive base and passionate tone. Then have a Steinway for performance of Bach, Mozart, Chopin and Debussy... In order to use the magic in the harmonic resonance to highlight the genius chord progressions and singing melodies. This is just my humble opinion.

Steinway sounded like default piano tone, the Bosendorfer sounded like those expensive records, and Yamaha sounded like every piano in the east asia

It's 2 am in Belgium and I just found out that Yamaha is my favorite. Thank you so much

Position and direction of your mics looks different throughout the recording and that also plays a HUGE role in sound quality, but I preferred the Bosendorfer overall. Each had a noticeable difference. Steinway resonates so much more than that of the others and maintains more overtones. STILL going with the Bosendorfer.

Bösendorfer. I just prefer the deeper sound it gives. Maybe my taste is very simple as I’m no music expert but there is no wrong answer here.

I've always liked the more mellow tone of the Bosendorfer and I stand my ground after hearing your tests.

I have always been Yamaha fanboy, so when I first clicked video I was expecting it to win. But this time, Bösendorfer won. Yamaha has great sound, it is little bit woody and balanced mixture between dark and bright, something you wont get bored very easily as it is all around "agricultural machine" that will take you anywhere. Steinway is a work of art and sound, glamorous, but in comparison it is too bright in my taste, it is unbeatable in high notes, but perhaps too meditated and sharp for earthly people like me. Steinway has this unique and distinct sound, that is very popular, perhaps too popular. Bösendorfer is dark and steamy, and not so modern sound I dare to say. It is precise and very Yamaha like (common?) sound, but slightly better. First time I heard it I was thinking about the song Beethovens Moonlight Sonata, even if you were playing Chopins Nocturne Op.9. I got this feeling, that I should find that flygel, just to play and record that one piece. Because it is close to perfect for that type of classical music. But, as always, it's good to remember that these brands have different models with more or less different sounds in comparison. And those sounds have shifted to all sorts of paths thorough the manufacturing decades. And don't forget the tuner, those can make it sound very different!

Wow the Bösendorfer...

I think Mozart pieces would sound good on the Yamaha, Debussy and Chopin pieces on the Bösendorfer, and Liszt pieces on the Steinway.

The Yamaha sounds sharp in a Way and the bosendorfer sounds very round and the Steinway is right in the middle. I like the Steinway the Best.

The microphone position was different, as was the location of the piano in the room, which has a lot of impact on the sound. Yamaha and Steinway sounded rather bright. Bosendorfer was richer and warmer - my favorite

Jacob : Please vote your favorite by clicking right here Me on the phone : 👁️👄👁️

Me slowly hiding my $100 electric piano I got from online*

The Bösendorfer sounds best to me. Love its sound!

They all sounded great. Its a matter of personal taste. Personally I liked the bosendorfer best. A very mature warm sound. Also, great skill!

Yamaha = high Steinway = normal Bösendorfer: depressed

Test 1 Classical Yamaha 0:35 Bosendorfer 1:27 Steinway 2:18 Test 2 Jazz Yamaha 3:20 Bosendorfer 4:03 Steinway 4:46

Bosendorfer has a unique character, I loved it. It comes down to personal choice because all the three are premium brands and sound fantastic.

I wanted the Bosendorfer to win both but I preferred the Steinway for the Chopin and the Yamaha for the Jazz - the Yamaha had that slight burn from some whisky or moonshine compared with the Steinway

I think that the position in the room is doing a difference as well here... but still, you can clearly perceive that each one of them has its own distinctive sound. Nice comparison! (I probably prefer the Bosendorfer, I like that glue in the mid-low register)

I'm a musician so this guy is touching my heart right now. He obviously spent a huge portion of his life in front of the keys. Thanks brother! Keep playing. Our hearts need that in this pandemic right now.

🙏🏾🤓The Bousendorfer 225 10 ft is my favorite piano on the planet 🌎 But the smaller Bousendorfer you played I didn’t like. The smaller Yamaha was a bit too bright. The best overall sound was the Steinway.

For me the bosendofer has the more refined and elegant sound, definitely its my fav piano for classical but it lacks the bite for Jazz. The Steinway on the other hand has that bite and that bite/flair is more rich and elegant than the yamaha imo.

I think the Bosendorfer wins the ticket for both! The upper notes sound less tingly, and more smooth. The deep notes come out more, and feel more connected!

Bosendorfer sounds very warm and deep, Yamaha sounded bright and the Jazz song came alive with it. The Steinway and Sons just sounded well balance between the two. I'm sure in the right setting and environment they will all sound phenominal.

Steinway tiene un sonido y una riqueza tonal que lo hacen el más adecuado para conciertos de música clásica, el Bosendorfer suena espectacular en el jazz y el sonido del Yamaha es vibrante y claro ideal para escenarios diversos sin grandes formalidades. (piano fiestero). Me gusta el ragtime y usaría al Yamaha para ejecutar la música de Scott Joplin

So the Yamaha fills the room with it's clear and clean, yet a bit "tinny" sound, to my ear, the Steinway just sounds like a "real" piano to me, (ie very balanced,) and the Bosendorfer sounds beautiful but slightly depressive.... I think you need all three, (lol,) and play them according to type of music you have chosen!

The Yamaha’s high notes were the most vibrant and I thought too “pingie” for classical music. The Bōsendorfer was a welcome relief to my ears with soothing deep and middle sound. The Steinway had the most mellow tone. Before making a decision, I’ll have to listen again to piano #1 and piano #2.

Just like all the other comments yamaha: bright Bosendorfer: warm Steinway: in between Personally would prefer steinway so you have the warmth and thd bright sound

The Bosendorfer for me. I think an important factor to consider is application. Where will it be played? Who’s singing on top of it?

I’ve always been impressed by the quality of most Bosendorfers that I’ve played (there was one upright that didn’t blow me away).. Its low and high range have a pure, ringing tone. It’s a beautiful sound.

The Bösendorfer was incredible, it had a smooth and rich sound.

Yamaha = Trash Steinway = Great piano, but too high pitched and cold sounding Bösendorfer = warm, characteristic tone, best piano

Un apunte para los que no hablan bien inglés: lo han comentado varios foreros: Bosendorfer tiene el sonido más cálido de todos y es muy apto para música clásica. Para mi gusto es excesivamente cálido. Stienway es el más equilibrado de los tres modelos a un precio muy elevado. Por fin Yamaha ofrece un sonido más parecido a este segundo piano que al alemán a un precio muy competitivo dentro de esta gama de modelos top. El yamaha es el mejor para música moderna, jazz, etc aunque no por ello es malo para clásico, ni muchísimo menos. La elección es obvia para mi: me quedo con Yamaha por presupuesto y un sonido que considero excelente. Indicar también que para que una grabación sea buena las condiciones de grabación deben ser idénticas y que grabar cerca de una pared distorsiona mucho el sonido. Por tanto si bien el vídeo es interesante queda muy lejos de ser profesional y válido para la otma de decisiones.

What about a 1994 Toyota Tacoma 4×4 with 124K mostly highway miles? No rust, 1 owner vehicle. Just got 2 new tires.

You just inspired me to purchase a Steinway before I die.